Finish Line Can Do Something To Help Youth Climate Movement’s Cause

I have a confession to make: I am a big fan of popular shoe brands. My other love is the environment. As a fan of shoe brands like Nike, Jordan, Adidas, Timberland, Converse and many others, Finish Line has become my favorite store, in no small part because this shoe and apparel chain has a broad reach underpinned by its nearly 700 store locations in the US. It also does not hurt that the company offers other great perks such as the Finish Line coupon code 20 and great sales offers.

As for my love for the environment, the Youth Climate Movement has been the organization whose ideals best resonate with my own when it comes to how we should interact with the environment. The thing I love most about this climate justice movement is that it does not just focus on creating awareness about environmental degradation, but that it also goes a step further to inspire the youth to stand up and do something to mitigate existing and ongoing damage to our environment. Don’t get me wrong, I am also happy with the work other climate justice organizations such as the Energy Action Coalition and We Are Power Shift are doing. It is just that I feel the Youth Climate Movement has a broader ideological sweep and is better positioned to initiate the political and social changes we need to protect the environment.

Over Consumption Exacerbates Climate Crisis and Accelerates Water Scarcity

How does over consumption affect the water of our planet? Let me use as an example printing and ink cartridges.

How Eco-Friendly is Your Ink?

There are many things that pollute our water. One of the is ink. Many people think that ink is harmless. The truth is that the chemicals used in inks are hazardous for our health and the ground water.

Almost every household has a printer. In fact, more than 300 million inkjet cartridges are sold every year in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The environmental impact is really big. Not only because the ink pollutes the water but also because the manufacturing of cartridges uses a lot of water. This is why big ink cartridge suppliers like 4inkjets.com have turned green using recycled ink and toner. And they offer incentives so that we use their eco-friendly products. 4inkjets offer coupons, while another printing company known as Jakprints plant a tree with every order. 4inkjets coupons save you 10%. In addition to ink, office paper requires a lot of water to be made. The fact is that the paper industry consumes more water than any other industry to produce a ton of product!

What About Your Shoes?

But paper is not the only product that requires water. Did you know that most products we consume every day require water to be made?

While farmlands do need lots of water to grow crops for food, several industries that are involved in manufacturing products we use every day, like shoes, quite unjustifiably waste huge amounts of water every day.

More On The Youth Climate Movement

The Youth Climate Movement (YouNGO), known in full as the International Youth Climate Movement (IYCM), is a global network of youth organizations. The collective goal of the organizations that make up the movement is to get young people to feel inspired, empowered, and moved to take action for the benefit of the environment.

The organization was established in 2005, and it has gone on to have representation in more than 100 countries, which has made its reach unlike anything else other climate organizations have been able to achieve. One of the appeals of this movement is that it promotes inclusivity, especially as far as other environmental organizations are concerned.

Among its members is the U.S. organization, Energy Action Coalition, which brings together youth-led environmental and social justice organizations with the aim of promoting clean energy and climate movement. The Energy Action Coalition also hosts Power Shift summits, held by We Are Power Shift. We Are Power Shift also focuses on the youth and the environment based on the realization that this is generation that will suffer the most from the devastating damages our environment is currently experiencing.

The Youth Climate Movement Needs Funding

For most part, the Youth Climate Movement is financed by its member organizations. However, once in a while, other organizations pitch in to help it pursue its cause. They include the UNICEF and even governments. However, this is never enough, which is why this movement needs all the support it can get.

With the blatant disregard for the environment that goes on today, thanks to several decades of industrialization, environmental organizations such as the Youth Climate Movement have their work clearly cut out for them. Only politicians are in a position to make the required legislative changes needed to make big corporations more concerned about their impact on the environment.

Unfortunately, with the long-standing under-representation of youth in politics, and the heavily financed lobbying efforts by big corporations keen to protect their financial interests at all costs, even if that involves severe environmental damage, it falls upon us as the youth to lobby for environmental preservation.

I know as well as you do that, individually, this is war cannot be won. But with organizations such as the Youth Climate Movement mobilizing millions of young people around the globe, political pressure will continue to mount internationally. Consequently, political leadership will be forced to make the changes needed to keep the environment safe.

Of course, the fight against enemies of the environment cannot be won without some funding. Corporations pour billions of dollars into lobbies that fight to ensure they continue abusing the environment as they pursue their narrow corporate interests. Although all that we need as the youth is a consistent, bold, and strong movement, we also need money in these movements so that they can promote their causes for environmental justice around the world. The climate change movements also need funds to organize summits, climate conferences, and create environmental protection paraphernalia among other financing needs.

How The Finish Line Youth Foundation (FLYF) Can Work

For those who don’t know much about Finish Line Youth Foundation (FLYF), it is the philanthropic arm of the Finish Line chain. FLYF was established in 1998, and has already spent $12 million in support of the youth and Special Olympics athletes. So, I believe that helping youth causes such as those pursued by Youth Climate Movement is right up its alley. The thing I like about FLYF is that is supports all kinds of youth projects.

For instance, just recently, FLYF gave $25,000 for the construction of a playground for special needs children. Moreover, in early 2015, the philanthropic body contributed $106,443 to several organizations. These organizations deal with issues regarding youth development, special needs, and healthy lifestyles. The FLYF has helped out by donating food to the hungry in Indiana and those affected by an earthquake in Haiti.

So, as you can clearly see, the Finish Line Youth Foundation is already dedicated to helping youth causes in all their forms, and supporting climate justice activists / activism would perfectly suit its goals. Speaking from experience, every youth who understands why it is important to to protect the environment takes climate justice very personally. So, as a body that aims to make a difference in the lives of the youth in its communities, FLYF can help the Youth Climate Movement, an organization that is fighting so that the youth can have a better future.

Conclusion

Still, it is not just Finish Line and its youth-oriented foundation that should take the initiative to promote environmental causes. The future of our environment concerns us all; and yet, not enough people are actively involved in ensuring that the state of the environment does not continue to deteriorate. I sincerely wish that there were more companies in support of the Youth Climate Movement. For now, my hope is that Finish Line, through its charity, Finish Line Youth Foundation, will one day offer the Youth Climate Movement monetary support and help promote its noble and futuristic cause for environmental justice.

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